All things are yours, whether . . . the present or the future—all are yours, and you are of Christ and Christ is of God. (1 Corinthians 3:21-23)

Sometimes, we shrink the truths of the Gospel down to things promised. To be sure, we have been promised an eternity with our Lord, and this eternity will be a place where there will be no more sorrow or sin, pain or persecution, fear or unfaithfulness, disease or death. In a word, it will be the paradise that was lost in the Garden of Eden by the sin of Adam and Eve. The apostle Paul describes this as the beatific vision of God: “Now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

But what about now? What does the Gospel promise us in this present life? What blessings can we expect before we cross the Jordan and enter into our eternal rest?

This article would indeed have no end if I were to try and set before you all that we have been given, for “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). Here are just a few things, which I pray will be both a comfort and an encouragement to you. We are . . .

Unconditionally loved

Completely forgiven

Perfectly accepted

Totally empowered

Supernaturally strengthened

Utterly united to God in Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit

We must always remember that the Gospel is not only a promise of eternal life. It also impacts our everyday life as well. As the apostle Paul wrote in the passage that opens this article, Whether things present or things to come, ALL THINGS ARE OURS!” And what was Paul doing, but simply advancing a truth that God had already set before His people.

The upright shall have good things in possession. (Proverbs 28:10 KJV)

Christian, it is important to remember that even a life full of “good things” does not mean we will not experience difficulties. Jesus promised that we will experience troubles in this life (John 16:33). The unbelieving world will present problems for the Christian, from intense pressure to intentional persecution.

And if that was not trouble enough, the believing world will present its problems too. Why? Because we are still sinners in moment-by-moment need of a Savior. We say things we ought not say; do things we ought not do; and think things we ought not think, making life difficult on ourselves and those around us. But remember this too: After the promise of problems, Jesus assures us, “But be of good cheer! I have overcome the world.” Because Jesus was an overcomer, we, too, are to be overcomers, regardless of the challenges and difficulties we face on this side of the grave.

In closing, as a child of the Most High God, you currently have good things in your possession. To live out this truth is to live a life marked by joy and thanksgiving to the One who has so graciously given it to you. And above all that you have been promised, you have the presence of your Lord Jesus everywhere you go. When Jesus walked with His disciples, they had Him with them physically, but not every moment of every day. But when Jesus left this earth, He sent His Holy Spirit and promised that His Spirit would dwell within us every moment in this life . . . and in the next. “Surely I am with you always,” He assures us, “to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

May this truth set us free to love our God and to proclaim His incredible promise to a world that desperately needs to hear it.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. Never forget that . . . Amen!

Tommy Boland is the pastor for Cross Community Church located at 841 SE 2 Ct. in Deerfield Beach. For more information, call 954-427-3045 or visit www.thecrosscc.org.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:17)
I meet far too many Christians who believe being a “new creation” means they are now to have the passion of the prophets, the discipline of the disciples and the strength of a superhero saint. Both sacred scripture and personal experience has taught me this is simply not the case. To be sure, through the sinless life, sacrificial death and supernatural resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, sin has been conquered and crushed. But, as I frequently remind our congregation, we must remember that inasmuch as sin no longer reigns in the life of the Christian – it still remains in the life of the Christian. We will fight the sin battle all the way into glory.
Now, before we were saved by the blood of the Lamb and made a new creation, we could only sin in the eyes of the Lord. Nothing we did brought honor, glory or praise to His name because everything we did we did for our own honor, glory and praise. Our selfish ambition and self interest ruled our hearts and shaped our lives. But when Jesus showed up, all that changed. As a new creation, we have an ability we did not have before Jesus. We now have the ability to resist the devil when he comes knocking at our door, and flee from the sinful impulses that still reside in the old nature. But if we think we will reach perfection in this life, we are setting ourselves up for certain defeat.
The ultimate outcome of the Christian life is perfection; when we cross the Jordan, we will be perfectly conformed into the image and likeness of our Lord Jesus Christ. But until that day, we will struggle against the sin nature that still resides within us. We must remember the same man who penned the above passage in his letter to the Corinthians also penned the following one in his letter to the Romans:
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do . . . For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do — this I keep on doing. (Romans 7:15, 19)
Paul was indeed a new creation, but he still battled against the sin nature that still remained within and so will you and me. Yet, the orientation of our lives has been radically changed by Christ. Instead of the heart beating for the self, it begins to beat for our Savior. We desire to live a life that is pleasing and acceptable to the One who saved us from sin, Satan, death and ourselves. When Jesus raises us up from death to life and makes us a new creation, He renews our mind, realigns our will and reorients our heart. At this level of living, because Christ is living in us (Galatians 2:20), we begin to make real and measurable progress against sin.
As new creations, we now have a new identity which cannot be shaken, because it is rooted in the unshakable One. Clothed in the righteousness of Christ, the Father sees us as He sees His son . . . perfect in every way. And, as a “new creation,” we now have a new power within us to fight against every temptation to sin that is greater than any power that comes up against us. Let the truth of who you are set you free to make forward progress and, when you don’t, fear not. You are unconditionally loved and completely forgiven.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. Never forget that . . . Amen!
Tommy Boland is the pastor for Cross Community Church, located at 841 SE 2 Ct. in Deerfield Beach. For more information, call 954-427-3045 or visit www.thecrosscc.org.